Author's note: Yet another 2021 fic. In absolutely no way did I mean Red to suffer – he's a nice monster and my good buddy – yet somehow ended up with this after three days of feeling kind of down. -_-

Keep in mind that 1) real-life рrеgnаnсy isn't my cup of tea (I'm ace), plus Red is a monster with a monster anatomy so I thought giving him a pocket á la WuvLuv toy would make sense, and 2) it's a vision Red is having in this fic.

It doesn't ache that much when warmed, Red soon realizes, protectively wrapping both paws around his belly. The loose fuzzy skin alone is not enough for this – whatever it is, and he can almost hear a tiny, plaintive voice in the back of his mind pleading: more warmth.

Whatever it is, it feels strangely hard through the fuzzy skin, and about the size of a large grapefruit... Red can't remember swallowing any of them whole before – voracious like the monsters of his kind are, it'd still be silly to just gulp your food down without taking some time to enjoy the taste, and he definitely wouldn't stop on just a grapefruit, let alone one.

When did it even grow in Red without him noticing, and what could be that tiny voice – not even as much of a voice as much it was a feeling, fainter than a thin hair of his mane, could it be–

A cub? His cub? His?

More warmth, it responds – this time with a wave of slight ache and sorrow, rising from Red's depths to lap at his heart and making him utter an "ah-". Warmth.

And it seems to understand a pat-pat of Red's mitten paw, a calming "wait", and a rustle of a soft flannel pyjama being pulled over it. It seems to calm down as the monster curls up on his side, so the egg – now he's almost sure it's an egg, odd for a creature of his kind, yet still – doesn't stretch the aching skin, or he himself doesn't accidentally crush it, who knows how hard is its shell by now.

Red notices something else as he lays down; he'd just mistake it for another fold of skin any other day, but a quick feel under his shirt finally proves that crossing his belly is nothing else than a– pocket? A pouch closed till its time comes?

Even more odd, but if such is his dream – if at all – he can get through it to the end.

After all, now he wondered what would happen – and how the "Reddling" would look, in its shell and afterwards.

Warmth, comes through him again – this time, a happy, relieved one. Warmth. And then: Home. My home. Through his every vein, his heart, the semi-liquid magic surrounding the egg, and paws begging for a stretch by now. My home.

Your home. Red sends the egg an embracing thought and finally turns onto his back to stretch–

when a beam from the ceiling crashes right onto him, and both a scream in the monster's throat and he himself freeze–

he freezes–

clutching at-

Bad Ending

-his sore belly with a crushed shell and cub within, its unexpected grave, releases a painful groan, and his wide eyes… go out forever.

Somewhere outside his dream, cackles Roy, pushing another button on the nightmare machine, not able to get his eyes off his – finally defeated – arch enemy on the screen. Heaven behold how long Roy had been longing to finally do that. To get close enough to this walking mop and play on his protective instincts – to the point they beget a stronger nightmare, and nowhere else than in Red himself at that.

Just one more button to go. Roy knows for sure the "cub" is now turning into a growing clot of dark matter, but needs to savor that moment – a mere moment before seeing his beloved creation finally rip the monster from within.

Good Ending

-a sofa pillow?!

Eyes still half-lidded but woken now, Red watches Yellow jump up to him and grab the pillow with a quick "oh-did-we-wake-you-up-oops-sorry" to hurl it at Duck, who (of course) ducks and throws another pillow at Yellow, who dodges and–

"…Phew." Red shakes his head with a nervous chuckle, watching his two "cubs" at the peak of their pillow fight. He's even grateful to Yellow now – he had a feeling the dream may go wrong at some point, but if "wrong" means having a sofa pillow hit you in the stomach mid-sleep, it's still better than what… else… would happen.

And today, on his way to the kitchen to make coffee, Red glances at a small safe in the wall with more relief than ever. After what he'd been through in a dream, knowing that there's nothing but a tuft of his own hair – whole, with roots, yet unwoven – in the safe calms down like nothing else.